By John M. Becker
LGBT student groups and gay-straight alliances in high schools and colleges across the country often sell T-shirts for National Coming Out Day to raise funds and spread awareness about the LGBT community.
The Straight and Gay Alliance (SAGA) at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota is no exception. This year, like every year, the group printed shirts proclaiming that “love is love.” But this National Coming Out Day took on greater significance in Minnesota because it came less than one month before voters there will decide whether to enshrine marriage discrimination into the constitution.
Against that emotionally-charged backdrop, one student decided to use National Coming Out Day — a day for celebrating the LGBT community — to spread a bigoted, hateful message. Minnesota Public Radio reports about Concordia College senior Rebecca Julius:
Julius, a devout Wisconsin Synod Lutheran, designed black T-shirts that say “sin is sin” across the front and list three Bible passages about truth and evil on the back.
“I don’t identify with all these people that say homosexuality is a perfectly acceptable way to live; that’s not me,” she said. “So the reason I wanted to do this T-shirt was one, to stand up for God’s word because I feel like it’s getting completely trampled in this place that’s supposed to be Christian and two, to just separate myself from it and not give anybody the impression that this what I believe.”
Just to give you an idea of the likely depth of Ms. Julius’s anti-gay views, I’ll point out that the Wisconsin Synod Lutheran (WELS) Church is the same denomination that Michele and Marcus Bachmann belonged to for more than a decade.
Rebecca Julius
Needless to say, Julius’s shirts were incredibly divisive on the 2,700-person campus, particularly because LGBT people are widely accepted there. Most “Cobbers,” as Concordia students are known, oppose the marriage amendment. But that didn’t deter Julius in the least. In fact, it seems to have emboldened her — according to the MPR report, she chose to go public with her anti-gay views “to reach out to others who oppose homosexuality but who might be nervous about sharing their opinion ‘because it’s not really the socially acceptable thing to do.’” A few like-minded students even ordered “sin is sin” shirts of their own.
Of course, like most hardcore homophobes, Julius is thoroughly convinced that her efforts have a heavenly imprimatur. She told MPR:
“I’ve definitely felt alone at more than one point on campus and I feel like I don’t necessarily fit the ‘Cobber mode’ but that’s OK with me because I know where I stand with my faith. And I know I have so many people behind me and supporting me and I also know that God is proud of what I’m trying to do for him.”
This sad story of bigotry does have a silver lining, though. Rebecca Julius doesn’t actually live in Moorhead, but across the Red River in Fargo, North Dakota. So no matter how often she wears her hurtful and divisive T-shirt or how sinful she thinks LGBT people are, she won’t be able to cast her vote against them next month.
Filed under: Views & Voices
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There’s a reason she “feels alone.” But she’s young. Perhaps there’s hope that her life experience will open her eyes and heart.
It’s funny. She looks like a lesbian….
She looks like a lesbian.
she needs a life, she must be miserable within her self
sin is sin….sin of HATE for anonther? sin of tatoos? sin of peircings? sin of lying? sin of aduiltery? why jsut name one? GET A BIGGER SHIRT :)
She’s a lezbo
smh
To anyone who is LGBTQ and knows this woman personally, do her a big favor and come out to her. Give her faces and people she can hate or maybe use to moderate her hate. It’s easy to hate strangers but a bit more difficult to hate someone you already know and like or even love. My older brother is Missouri Synod Lutheran but I made certain he knew that I knew he knew who I was. He still treats me well and I know I have put a crack in the wall his faith built around him.
Seems like she need a Hate is Hate shirt.
Silly bitch….doesn’t she know that “judging others is a sin???
She has the right to say (and wear) whatever she wants. However, I hope she understands that not only is not everyone a Christian, but not everyone even believes in God. So, if she thinks homosexuality is a sin, then she can go ahead and not sin and she’s fulfilled her obligation to her faith. But the rest of the world has a right to live how they want to live, and two consenting adults loving and marrying shouldn’t be regulated by anyone else’s religion.
The definition of a true DB!
Sounds like a reaction formation to me. Don’t be afraid of us, Your to young and to dumb .
Another bigoted asshole…when will it end? Butch, get over yourself!!
No one said you have to like everyone but you definitely have to respect everyone’s right to exist peacefully. I dont like her, but i won’t go out of my way to make her life harder like she would with us.
She’ll make someone a great husband someday…
narrow minded freak. great upbringing… speaks miles of your family and ur church…
She needs to just come out already and stop hating herself.
… she sure doesn’t look very happy….karma
Attention whore.
bless her heart, poor child needs to have sex dyke who knows how….that what they tell us right? all you need is sex with a man?????
Guhhhhh!!!!!
Self loathing lesbian
the bible says a lot of things, people just pick and choose what they think is best. also says to touch the skin of a dead pig in an abomination, so thats equivalent to homosexuality, clearly. eventually the world will change, once people open their hearts and minds.
Who really gives cares what she thinks and does? Who is she anyway??
she should worry about her studies and not how we live our lives!
i hate h8erz
I bet she would not have to look more than a second in her life to find where she has and does sin everyday !!
skank has no right to say anything
You can lie to your mother but dont lie to us you are a lesbian!!!
I’m pretty sure I know what her problem is.
Bigoted Cow can choke on her own bile.
What a disgusting pile of flesh. NO THANKS!
If she says she believes in the bible then how does she reconcile the anti-gay passages with Jesus’ teaching of loving your neighbor and not judging people? I happen to have educated myself and I know that those passages are actually about rape and prostitution rather than homosexuality. But even if the were, What Jesus said trumps everything else. If you believe nothing else you should follow the 10 commandments and Jesus. That’s what I try to do.
she looks like a lesbian haha
So butch makes a bad pic? Really..
Wow….. the amount of hate and judging in the list of posts I just read is no better that the hate this young woman harbors. Instead of hating how about educating….
Ut oh another self-loathing repressed lesbian!
You can’t educate a Bible thumper!
Love how this article leaks with biasness
I am so OVER self-righteous Christians that feel the need to make stupid points
*sarcasm with last comment*
Dumb is dumb
Don’t worry sweetheart, they hate you too.
People like this girl are the reason non believers won’t even try church out. She makes God out to be this evil vindictive being who would rather smite you than love you. No human being can speak for God, we can’t possibly know what he wants. I’m a huge a equality supporter and a Christian. I can’t believe she would think it’s better to hate someone for something they can’t control than to help them gain acceptance, find happiness and hopefully get a close relationship with God. This makes me so sad :(
I found her on facebook and sent her a nice piece of my mind. You can do the same.
http://www.facebook.com/rjulius008
Trying to accrpt your choice of this lifestyle with the nitpicking of the bible is like trying to say that skin color has no influence in this election
Research is showing that the more homophobic a person is, the more chance they are deep in the closet and their denial is being transfered to their behavior towards others. Looks like her outside self has realized this. She just needs to match to her inside self and COME OUT of the closet.
Do you also believe in poligamy, or 50 yr olds marrying 8-9 yr olds? both of these marriage models are in the bible. I do not fault you for your faith, as I am also a Christian. However, my Jesus taught love for everyone, not just a few select people.
@ Jerry Houdini Shepardini: I don’t know about you, but I didn’t choose shit…I was BORN THIS WAY, thank you very much!
shes probably just mad everyone thinks shes a lesbian and she cant handle the reality that shes a big ol dyke….She looks like a lesbian
I find her sad and pitiable really.
What can ya do about stupidity??God made us all for heaven’s sake.
she looks like she could pass for being a lesbian herself…. she needs to get over it, and come out of the closet.
Poor thing is gay and doesnt want to admit it
this girl is filthy, pathetic and sad, omg how can u say that u hate all gays just because u dont agree with their life choice does not mean that u have to hate them all together, they never did anything to u nor do u even know them as people so for u to hate a good chunk of the population without even meeting them is pretty low and sad, how bout u worry about ur own pathetic little life and not judge people so much, because that is definitely not what god intends for u, nor do u have that right.
And I thought people from Minnesota and Lutherans were nice. Stupid me.
Butch? Lezbo? Dyke? “She looks like a lesbian herself”? As a gay woman I find a lot of these responses offensive. Just exactly what does a gay woman look like? Cut the stereotypical crap. Pfffft.
She has every right to freedom of speech that we do. Leave her alone, jeez!
One day, she’ll realize that of all the 7 deadly sins, homosexuality is not one of them. However, wrath and pride are!
Hey lady, stop giving Fargo a bad name! We don’t all suck!
Love is sin? … um nope, didn’t think so.
She looks like a big lesbian.
She probably hates herself for liking the Vag & not the P, but can’t come to terms w/ it, so projects her self hate towards others.
Look at her!
She looks like a miserably unhappy person.
I guess she really wants everyone to know that she’s probably a closeted lesbian who hates herself.
She can stuff her “sin” where ever it will do the most good — I guess Freedom of Religion doesn’t sound familiar or mean anything to her either.
Total biker dyke in 5 years. Come in from cold of your dumb dead dogma sweetheart and ride!
She hates her own lesbianism I think.
saying you we’re born gay is like saying you we’re born a nigger. Niggers CHOOSE to be dumb and useless
My hands were shaking as I read this… >=| what a bitch
that’s a lotta fear of being a dyke hey?
lol.. it’s only scarey for a second.. then.. Bliss!
I am ”gay” but even that does not stop me from giving her my full respect, she just has the balls to share her beliefs. So yeah who gives a fck ^w^
Jerry, you should chill with the woman in the article. You were made for each other!
Yes sin is sin. But does that mean you get to take away peoples rights just because it goes against your beliefs? No, it shouldnt.
LGBTQ Nation, why do you give energy to people like this and Linda Harvey? We know there are many fear-filled, knuckle-dragging, superstitious, people out there who use their “religious beliefs” to excuse hatred, disrespect, and the denial of human rights to those they deem unworthy or different. Why are you promoting their agendas for them?
Just another Christian Extremist who hides her sin of hatred behind the name of Gpd.
And hating is a sin duh!
Her?!?!? Well, okay, whatever. Cafeteria style religion. She should not haved pierced ears, or be wearing a t-shirt and I do hope it is all cotton…..more nonsence from her god construct we are all better off without!
she looks so unhappy- I prefer happy :)
She looks like she’s about to explode….what’s she holding in
Kim, if we stick our heads in the sand and not look at people or organizations that oppose us, how do we prepare for our defense? We should allow them to gain momentum and strength? We need to know as soon as it starts to form good arguments for defense.
Sadly she’s probably a closeted lesbian who can’t reconcile who she is with what her hateful church teachers her.
O.k. now she can come out. As so many fire breathing homo-hating Republicans have done.
That girl is so butch, can we say self hating here!?!
By the way I think we found our lesbian Marcus Bachmann!
Yes, sin is sin, and hating others, is sin, and denigrating the love of others is sin, and thinking God hates Gay is sin. God loves the Gay as he does the Straight. So yes, Sin is Sin as her shirt proclaims, and she is the one commiting Sin.
She needs a trans-vaginal ultrasound……
whoa! she’s potentially consigning herself to a life with no stylist, decorator, wedding planner, clever sarcasm or theater. Get her into therapy ASAP
BITCH!!!!!!!!!
and ya if she hates gays than let her…. you dont want to be like her and hate straight people, just ignore her comments and one day maybe one day she will she that us gays are just as normal as straight people
and um stop saying shes a lesbian when you dont even know her she can dress like that and still be a straight person theres many women like that are straight even they look boyish they can be straight…..dont judge a book by its cover….unless you know her… and like why do you have to DRESS GAY TO BE GAY ????? wtf ? i dress girly and dress boyish and have long hair but i dont look gay but i am…..theres men that are athletic and have tons of tattoos and there GAY theres women that look girly and there GAY……
barf!
hey if u want to be a god freak—fine.keep it to yourself—just like i keep it to myself that im a lesbien.
I love her as my neighbor as I do myself, I will pray for her so one day she will have a change of heart like so many other cruel homophobic people who are now tolerant, respectful and even supportive activist for the LGBT community.
she looks like a dyke to me,, come on over girl!
I hate STUCK UP BITCHES like her! I’m a straight guy, I support gay rights, I am NOT fond of so much hatred towards the LGBT Community. I will too pray for her SOUL that one day she will look inside of herself and wake up.
Who is she to say sin is sin? Everything we (humans) do is a sin! If you translate the bible to a certain way, everything we do is a sin! But I agree with everyone…Love is Love. If she hates sinners…well that includes all of humanity.
well she got her 15 minutes of fame… next
Someone is a little bit behind on the enlightenment scale! just say-in =-
Sin is sin and the first amendment is the first amendment. Freedom of religion AND freedom from religion.
She should be bitch slapped
i wrote her on fb sent her message saying…… Hate is Hate!!
She may not be hateful, but she’s very close to being so
wtf
Another self-hating gay person….so sad.
She wants everyone to know she claims to be Christian but is really a bigot.
Hate is hate and inequality is wrong!
Rebecca needs to come out: that hair, say no more!
Oh the irony in your reactions
I get the feeling she had a girlfriend throw her to the curb!
Instead of expressing her personal views that are from her personal faith, she should just focus on getting her college education.
She needs to read the book Confessions of An Evangelical Mom then she would know the true word of God!
The Wisconsin Synod of the Lutheran Church is about as ultra conservative as you can get. This girl is beaten down by religion and will never think for herself. She is likely a self loathing closeted gay.
is that a woman?? for real
Is she not entitled to her opinion?
well, isn’t she annoying. most of the kids I knew in college/high school that hated gays ended gay themselves. she’ll figure out when she meets the tight gal.
sure she is entitled to her opinion, and she has every right to voice her opinion, AND she has to take the consequences… which i’m guessing is a LOT of flack!
This is what I just love about people who blame their personal homophobia on religion – if you are a truly religious person then you would know its not your place to judge gods children that’s gods job so perhaps all of those who believe they are here to place there personal judgments and beliefs upon others should go back to church and bible so they understand we are all gods children and WE were all created in his likeness and leave the judgment to God!
1. She looks like a lesbian….just saying…. 2. According to the bible, we come from 1 man and 1 woman…. who had 2 sons…. lets think about that for a moment…. 3. I believe the only difference between LGBT and the Heterosexual counterparts is the bedroom preference, why is it so important for her to deny a basic human need? We as LGBT only want the same RIGHTS as our heterosexual counterparts, we don’t want anything more than that…. so again, why is it important to know what happens in my bedroom? – Vent of the day :-)
Don’t judge me based on your ignorance. I think that is a perfect response to her.
And I have to throw in that luckily this country wasn’t founded on religion so her bible comment shouldn’t be taken into consideration during this election
She is definitely a lesbian who is angry because she can’t come out.
Her loss…
Hey, hey. You say you’re straight? So is spaghetti until it’s hot, bitch!
she wants me. she wants my body.
That’s ok because this Philadelphia student wants everyone to know that she thinks you’re an awhile.
I thought she was a dude.
She has the right to express her opinion of her beliefs. I personally believe it’s sad that they don’t line up with what I consider Christian. But perhaps time will tell, she’s still young.
So what? It’s Free Speech. I grew up in the 80s, back then Eddy Murphy and Sam Kinison where telling the most homophobic jokes in the world, her “sin is sin” t-shirt shouldn’t bother anyone but the ennui born in the 90s, you know, the uber-sensitive douchebags that commit suicide over cyber bullying.
quoted from a friend…”So, there’s a Chik-fil-A opening up near our neighborhood and James told me that when they open a new location the first 100 people get free food for a year or some such thing. Wouldn’t it be cool if the first 100 people in line were LGBT?” Yes it would. I believe they are in the Huntington Beach , Ca area.
Hating others doesn’t make you a better person. Hating the way others love doesn’t make you a better person. Being narrow minded doesn’t make you any more intelligent. Promoting hatred and closed minded views doesn’t make this world a better place because it leads to people thinking it’s okay be hurtful and possibly violent because others are “different” or in this case “sinful”. I say enough. This world has enough hate. This world has enough violence. This world has enough narrow minded fools to destroy the beautiful capacity we have to love and embrace one another. Live and let live. Love and let love. Let her think what she will but it doesn’t make her a better person for “reaching out” to promote hate. The future is made by those who can rise above the negative feelings and to create ones of love and acceptance. Is that not what we want? Peace and harmony? I promise it will not happen if all we do is talk about how we can restrict the rights of our fellow human beings and treat them like they don’t exist. That is not to be human. To be human is to feel empathy. Which, I must say, Julius does not.
Want peace? Want marriage equality? Check out GaryJohnson2012.com Change has to begin somewhere!
1 Corinthians 6:9-11
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor [a]effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
hey, she can think and believe whatever she wants. that doesn’t mean that she doesn’t have to face the consequences of wearing her opinions for all to see like that, however.
lots of christians do not believe that the bible is a condemnation of homosexuality. if she interprets the scriptures this way, then that is her right. but i am curious as to why she feels that EVERYONE, regardless of their faith or creed, has to live by HER rules…
I won’t share the hate and discrimination being expressed here. Every view including for/against slavery is in the Bible We don’t allow slavery or stone children for disobedience so stop believing the literal translation of the parts of the Bible you want and decide to be a judge probably above your pay scale.
well fuck you too lady